Puno appoints officers of Reg’l Court Admin Office

Supreme Court Chief Justice Reynato Puno has designated officers of the Regional Court Administration Office in line with the decentralization of the functions of the Office of the Court Administrator (OCA).

Under Administrative Order No. 16-2008, Puno formally organized the Regional Court Administration Office (RCAO) and appointed key officials to run the pilot RCAO in the 7th Judicial Region (Bohol, Cebu, and Negros Oriental).

He named Judge Cresencio Rafael Tan Jr. of the Duma­guete City Regional Trial Court, Branch 30 as Regional Court Administrator (RCA).

The other RCAO officials are lawyers Rully Garcia, deputy RCA; Rosemarie Pabatao, assistant RCA for budgeting; Catherine Bagano, assistant RCA for financial accounting and disbursement; Isidro Bongcayao Jr., assistant RCA for general services; Denis Pacas, Assistant RCA for human resources Development; and Ceferino Faunillan, Jr., assistant RCA for revenue management.

The RCA can propose the detail of other support personnel needed to hasten the implementation of the pilot RCAO in the 7th Judicial Region.

The RCAO project aims to decentralize the functions of the OCA to facilitate judicial operations in major regions of the country.

 The pilot project will be in the seventh judicial region covering Cebu, Bohol, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor and will be based in the Lapu-Lapu City HOJ in Cebu.

OCA, created by virtue of PD 828 (as amended by PD 842), exercises direct supervision over the first-level and second-level courts, thus plays a vital role in strengthening the link between higher and lower courts and provide more efficient service for the citizenry by frontline courts.  – Sandy Araneta